Two Sides of the Coin

Rating: Teen/Mature

Part Ten

"Hey, hey, Maxie boy. How ya doin?" Rath asked in a voice filled with false bravado. "Long time no see."

"Yeah, cause after you tried to kill me, time really flew," said Zan. "Now let Liz go before I…"

"Before you what? scoffed Rath. "You ain't got the nads to do anything to me."

"Actually, he does," said Liz. "But you know what? So do I."

Liz focused her mind and sent a short burst of energy at Rath, forcing him to release her. Rath jumped back in shock, not from the energy burst, but from the fact that it came from Liz.

"What the fuck?" he shouted.

"Leave me alone, Rath," Liz said, twisting her arm free. She pushed past both Rath and Zan and started walking rapidly down the street.

"Leave her alone, Rath," Zan said, glaring at Rath. His eyes reflected an anger that was in no way equal to the scene that had just transpired. "You leave her alone, or you'll answer to me. You got that?"

Zan shoved Rath against the wall and started to walk in the direction Liz had taken. His very walk triggered a memory in Rath, and without thinking, he reacted.

"Yo! Zan!" he called out.

Zan hesitated slightly, and his shoulders stiffened. "Zan's dead," he called over his shoulder. "Just like you tried to kill me." He continued walking up the street, ignoring Rath's shouts.

Frantically Zan's eyes scanned the crowds as he searched for Liz. His heart pounded with fear when he realized she was nowhere in sight.

"Looking for me?" a voice asked.

Zan turned around so fast he almost gave himself whiplash. When he saw Liz standing behind him grinning, anger and resentment built up inside of him and he glared at Liz.

"Nice of you to wait!" he barked

"What's you're problem?" Liz asked, thoroughly confused.

"Well, let's see," said Zan, pretending to reflect. "I find you being man handled by my supposed best friend who tried to murder me, and Max, and then, the next thing I knew, you disappeared. Again! You didn't even have the decency to wait and see if I ran into any problems with him."

"Well," Liz said, trying to remain calm. "First off, I figured you could handle yourself with Rath with him. And second, I didn't just take off on you. As soon as I was out of site, I ducked out into the street and doubled back and came back up behind you. I believe it's called 'having you're back,' though why I'd want to do that is beyond me. Now, the way I see it, we have two choices. We can stand here, out in the open, arguing about it like a couple of sitting ducks, or we can get the hell out of her."

Zan stared down at Liz for a second. Without warning, he grabbed her arm and stalked off down the street.

"Ouch, stop it, you're hurting me," Liz cried.

"No I'm not," said Zan. "Now move."

"I assume you know where we're going?" Liz asked.

"Yeah, I'm finding us a place to sleep," said Zan. "Now will you come on?"

"What's he doing here, anyhow?" Liz asked, not really expecting an answer. "I thought for sure he and Lonnie would have gone back to New York."

Max ignored her question and headed down the stairs to a nearby subway station, dragging Liz along with him.

"We'll talk later," Zan said. "Just follow me, and keep up."

At the turnstile, he used his powers to activate the unlocking mechanism and pushed Liz through. When she was through, he followed and used his powers to jam the turnstile. It wasn't much, but he hoped it would cause some congestion and help them shake Rath.

The roar of an arriving train captured his attention, and he grabbed Liz's hand and they ran down the stairs leading to the subway platform. Luck was with them, and they made it onto a train that was just preparing to depart the station.

Panting slightly from the exertion, Liz sank into an available seat, only to be yanked from it unceremoniously by Zan.

"We're not staying," he said. "Come on."

He pulled Liz across the train and used his powers to open the door and push Liz out of the moving train and onto the platform. He looked around behind him briefly before he jumped out onto the platform next to Liz. Steadying himself, he quickly turned and looked back at the train to see Rath's angry face staring at them through the grime streaked window of the train.

"How'd you know he was following us?" Liz asked, shocked by what had just occurred.

"I didn't know, but it was a pretty safe guess," said Zan.

"Yeah, well, you sure guessed right," Liz said. "But now what?"

"I, I uh, really hadn't thought too much about our next move," Zan admitted. "Mostly I was just concerned with making sure we lost Rath. I guess we'd better get the hell out of here."

"Oh, and look, conveniently enough, this train is going in the opposite direction of Rath," said Liz, pointing at an incoming train.

"Shall we take a train ride?" Zan asked in a pseudo-snobby voice."

"Yes, lets," said Liz in the same phony voice.

Zan grabbed Liz's hand and together they made a mad dash for the train, climbing aboard just before the doors slid shut.

They found empty seats and fell into them, their euphoria waning as their adrenalin levels dropped. They road in silence for several stops, neither one looking at the other, nor wanting to be the first to break the silence.

After a while, Liz began to fume silently, blaming Zan for all her troubles. She had tried repeatedly to separate herself from all things alien related. Yet here he was, dragging her kicking and screaming back into the fray.

Zan, on the other hand, sat next to Liz, resentment building in him like steam in a pressure cooker. He was furious with Liz and her holier than thou attitude. Granted, she didn't ask to be a part of any of this, but when push came to shove, her only other alternative was death. Max had saved her from certain death. There was no two ways about it. Max may have involved her in all of this, but from where he stood, it beat the hell out of being dead.

The longer he thought about it, the angrier he became, and when the train stopped, he stood up, grabbed their bags, and got off the train without even looking to see if Liz was following him. He glanced at the large map on the wall, then turned and examined the various advertisements that dotted the walls of the subway station. When he found what he was looking for, he started up the stairs of the subway, still ignoring Liz.

Liz's anger grew at what she considered Zan's cavalier treatment of her. Without so much as a 'by your leave,' he was totally taking charge, and she wasn't going to stand for it.

Leaving the warmth of the subway, they climbed the stairs and emerged in the cold northern night. Zan looked around briefly, tightened his grip on their bags and began to walk purposefully down the street. Still angry, Liz followed him, her fury growing with every step she took.

Zan stopped abruptly in front of a large building. He checked the street number on the door then pushed through door and into the lobby of a very luxurious hotel. Liz gaped at the opulence around them and followed Zan as he made his way to the front desk.

"Yes, may I help you?" the clerk asked, with a smile."

"Yes, we'd like a room, please," said Zan. "With a king sized bed," he added as an afterthought.